This invention is directed to the providing of an effectively efficient and portable physical exercising device which is specifically designed to be utilized by persons who have physical problems such as heart attack patients and cannot engage in strenuous physical conditioning exercises. However, the device is not limited to such people as it is believed to also provide more advantageous exercising for those who do not have any physical problems of that nature. Several types of physical exercising devices are known however, these are primarily of a relatively complex and extremely large nature resulting in expensive manufacturing processes, high costs to the consumer, and thus, are not adapted to individual home use. Most of the known structures are also of a type designed for long term use in a specific location. Furthermore, the installation of many of these types of exercising devices requires a substantial outlay of money and expenditure, thus making owning such a device practical only for health spas and physical rehabilitation centers.
The most common type of physical exercising device similar to this invention is disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 1,158,779 and 3,876,198. These two patents disclose exercising devices which are of a couch or bench configuration. Both feature back support surfaces which are relatively planar, although U.S. Pat. No. 1,158,779 does permit the formation of a wedge as disclosed by its FIG. 3. This wedge-shaped position is deemed to be important in exercising devices for the reduction of lower back muscle strain and the strain associated with the abdominal muscles. In this regard, U.S. Pat. No. 1,158,779 does not permit the user to bend at the waist as is desired such as for sit-up exercises. U.S. Pat. No. 3,876,198 merely shows an inclined surface having a motor driven pull up bar.
Exercise devices which are closely related to the exercise table or couch are those of a much less fixed-installation nature as shown in U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,545,748 and 3,558,131. These less bulky and less complex exercise devices possess many of the advantages of the larger exercise couches shown in U.S. Pat. Nos. 1,158,779 and 3,876,198, but may be disassembled and are more readily stored, an important factor for exercise devices to be used in the home. However, the structures in these two patents, as well as the patents resembling couches, all feature a back support surface as part of the exercise device. None of them seek to use the floor surface as a means for providing back support.
Additionally, none of the patents utilize a bar in a manner such that it can provide a variety of exercise functions. The bars in these patents serve only a limited number of exercise functions or else assist in providing a leg restraint for exercises such as sit-ups. U.S. Pat. No. 1,158,779 has a strap 80 which serves only to secure the legs to the device. A similar strap is found in U.S. Pat. No. 3,876,198 as designated by strap 60 in U.S. Pat. No. 3,545,748 in strap 14. U.S. Pat. No. 1,158,779 also has a bar 41, but its use appears limited to arm exercises and it is incapable of serving as a leg restraint. U.S. Pat. No. 3,558,131 also has bars 72, 38 and 40, but all assist in lifting type exercises, while none serve as a leg restraint. U.S. Pat. No. 3,545,748 also has a bar which only assists in the lifting type exercise since even in FIG. 10, it is the strap, not the bar, which serves as a leg restraint. Similarly, U.S. Pat. No. 3,876,198 also has a bar 50, but it does not serve as a leg restraint buy only as an aid in lifting type exercises.
It is also known that some exercise devices are spring-biased. Such a device is shown in U.S. Pat. No. 3,558,131 in which the spring serves as a means to provide substantial tension for the movement of various bars. However, that exercise apparatus does not incorporate a wedge-shape nor does its bar function as a leg restraint. U.S. Pat. No. 3,876,198 also includes a spring, but that exercise device is motor driven and the spring 84 does not function as a tension means.